This invention relates to telecommunication technologies generally and particularly to conferencing systems capable of communicating data through a local area network.
As technologies continue to advance in high speed, many high-tech companies attempt to commercialize their products in a short period of time in order to remain competitive in their respective markets. However, speeding up research and development alone will not ensure a product""s commercial success. The reliability of the product also plays an important role, especially in telecommunication equipment areas to which the present invention is related.
More specifically, data integrity and interoperability are two key reliability elements in a highly complex electronic conferencing system. The electronic conferencing system typically conforms to protocols defined by Telecommunication Standardization Sector of International Telecommunication Union (ITU-T). Also, the conferencing system is capable of transmitting video, audio, data collaboration and control/indication information. Achieving high data integrity and interoperability of the electronic conferencing systems often involves an iterative and thorough verification process of the system""s communication stack. A communication stack represents a combination of software and hardware, which allows the system to communicate with another system, or a network or even with the system itself (well known in the art as xe2x80x9cloopbackxe2x80x9d). The mentioned software and hardware implement thereon components such as appropriate protocols, industry specifications or standards, interfaces to other applications, network interface devices and its associated device drivers, or any other needed components to make the communication possible.
Frequently, the discussed verifications do not take place until the entire communication stack is available. Since many of the communication stack""s components are often independently developed, such as a third-party-developed device driver for a network interface device, timely deliveries of all components become condition precedents for completing the verification process on time.
In addition to the possible dependency on third parties"" components, the communication stack usually becomes obsolete when its originally intended uses mature. Since developers often design and implement the communication stack with only the original use in mind, much of their developed components cannot be reused in a different setting.
As an illustration, as more computers connect to networks, a different conferencing standard, ITU-T Recommendation H.323 (published in May, 1996), appears to gain wider acceptance. Although many conferencing systems employing a more matured conferencing technology for point to point connection like ITU-T Recommendation H.320 (published in March 1993), H.320 conferencing systems are still widely used today. Unfortunately, most of these H.320 conferencing systems cannot be easily modified to operate in a network environment. Additionally, in order to bridge two conferencing systems with two different conferencing protocols, a gateway performing translation from one conferencing protocol to another is needed. As has been demonstrated, moving from a point to point setting to a network environment, much of the already developed components cannot be easily reused, and new components need to be reinvented and implemented.
As has been demonstrated, an alternative method and apparatus is needed to allow a conferencing system to transmit and receive non-Local Area Network (LAN) electronic conferencing data, such as H.320 data, over a LAN.
A method and apparatus capable of transmitting and receiving non-Local Area Network (LAN) electronic conferencing data over a LAN is disclosed. The method involves a electronic conferencing system with a communication stack conforming to a non-LAN based conferencing protocol. However, the communication stack exchanges the non-LAN data with the LAN.
In one embodiment, the communication stack further includes a transmission formatter conforming to the non-LAN based conferencing protocol and a modular interface layer, coupled to the transmission formatter. The modular interface layer exchanges the non-LAN data with the LAN.
Although this embodiment of the present invention discusses a modular design scheme, it should be obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art to employ a different method and still do not exceed the scope of the present invention.